2006 TexAQS / GoMACCS

High pollution and haze events frequently affect Texas in the summer; however, the sources and the factors that shape the air quality are not well known. Both local and distant sources (transported pollution) are believed to play a role in these events. In turn, pollution from Texas can be transported out of state, with potential adverse impacts on regional air quality and climate.

An instrumented aircraft can uniquely address questions relevant to both climate and air quality components, e.g.:

From the perspective of regional air-quality research, aircraft measurements can characterize multiple important features of the existing pollution issues in Texas. The 2006 study will address the processes of ozone and secondary aerosol formation, sampling both daytime and nighttime chemistry, and seek to improve the understanding of roles that emissions, chemistry and transport play in shaping Texas air quality.
From the perspective of climate research, an aircraft can undertake a systematic study of the formation and evolution of the chemical and optical properties of aerosols from urban and industrial sources. The aim of such research is to address one of the more important open questions in climate research: how the various types of emissions and the subsequent atmospheric chemistry determine the optical properties of aerosols, and hence, the impact of these aerosols on radiative forcing in the atmosphere.

NOAA's Atmospheric Research Campaign
Combining Climate Change and Air Quality Research